Scrape through
verb
To just make it through a difficult or tight situation.
Tom is struggling with his studies, but he managed to scrape through the final exam.
Often appears as...
- scrape through an exam
- scrape through by the skin of one's teeth
Usage tips
Informal
verb
To just make it through a difficult or tight situation.
Tom is struggling with his studies, but he managed to scrape through the final exam.
Often appears as...
- scrape through an exam
- scrape through by the skin of one's teeth
Usage tips
Informal
Definition 1 of 1
Pro Tip 1/3Effort Implied
The phrase suggests that success was achieved with great effort and usually at the last moment.
He scraped through his driving test after many failed attempts.
Pro Tip 2/3Bare Minimum
It implies doing just enough to meet the basic requirements, without excelling.
She managed to scrape through the interview with the minimum required score.
Pro Tip 3/3Slight Success
Offers a sense of relief or narrow escape from failure, and not a robust success.
Despite being ill, he scraped through the marathon just before the cutoff time.
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